Canon, Nikon & Sony - a revelation!

I've had my K100D now for 18 months and before that I had a Pentax Optio S and an Optio 550S (a brilliant camera - far ahead of the competition at the time and can even hold its own today).

I have to admit that I never even considered another brand when I bought the K100D because I had always been so impressed with Pentax quality and the reviews of the K100D were all fantastic. I had my heart set on it and I've never regretted my purchase.

So - today, for the very first time, I held a Canon (450D) and Nikon (D60). Well - what a revelation it was. I can't believe how much "cheaper" the build quality felt. I really was stunned to the point that my partner was getting annoyed at me constantly saying things like "Feel the buttons", "feel the focus ring", "see how cheap this plastic feels?"! Don't even get me started on the Sony Alpha A200. Eugh. The viewfinder was dark and dingy and the build quality felt even worse than the others. I appreciate these aren't the top of range models but I was seriously shocked at the difference between them and my beloved Pentax.

It made me even more sure that I've made the right decision in ordering my K20D from SRS last week (it will be arriving tomorrow!)

Not much to say about that except: Told you so !

..and people still buy them because spotty youths say they're the best!

Canikony users just don't know what they're missing, still, their loss

Well what can you expect when the shop staff have no knowledge of cameras. Went into Dixons yesterday to have a play wih a GX20. The sales guy wanted to know why i was thinking of switching brands from Pentax to Samsung. He didnt realise they were in fact similar cameras and could share lenses...

The assistant still didnt believe me until I asked him to pass me a K-m and I switched the lenses over.

I made a few comments about the Canikkons being "toy" cameras and that they should stock some more proper cameras like the K20D

if Pentax won't sell enough to make a profit it would be our lost too
What if Pentax should sell more as the canikons do, they would make quite some profit and more money to spend on development, they should be able to make a dream camera I think

Now that I think about it like this, why are the canikons so crap/toy like compared to Pentax :
It proves to me that Pentax has more love for photography then the others

If Pentax advertised their cameras perhaps some magazines may rate their cameras and lenses a bit better. I mean when was the last time a Canikkon camera or lens got a poor write up??

I suppose the same goes for shops. If Pentax had more of a presence in the likes of Jessops / Currys etc. they may sell more bodies....

Having been used to my K100D build quality, when I picked up a friends Canon 350D, it nearly floated away. It was so light, and plasticy!

This was exactly the reason I chose my K10D originally, if I hadn't felt the difference, I would have fallen into another camp!

Same here. I tried the Canon and Nikon and found them both extremely light and had a 'cheap' feel to them. I then felt the K10d and was amazed but the 'build' quality...

I've had a go with a Canon 350D. I liked the low weight, but the right-hand grip was uncomfortable, the viewfinder too small (though bright), and the low number of controls and menu settings pathetic.

Well, I've now taken delivery of my K20D (thanks Chris @ SRS!). What an incredibly beautiful solid bit of kit it is too. I can't wait to find the time to get out and try it properly. So glad I made the decision to go for it after all. Roll on the weekend.

Well, I had decided to upgrade from my Fuji 9600 (a great camera, still got it), I went into my local toy shop and looked at Pentax, Nikon, Canon, and Sony.

Sony I more or less ruled out as I will not willingly buy anything with that name on it. It got a fair hearing though, as much as I could anyway.

I decided that I wanted the self cleaning aspect of the viewfinder, in body anti shake, and a few other odds and sods that I forget for now. They all mattered, and I spent an age going through them.

In the end, the only logical choice seemed to be Pentax. I bought a K200D as it seemed the best bang for the bucks. All the others were lacking in some aspect that I felt was either desireable or necessary.

An odd thing is, there seems to be only a reltivelysmall number of add ons for Pentax, whereas all the others are snided out with choices. This is a good, although frustrating, thing, as it saves me money as I can't buy things that I just know I don't need.

So, current kit, K200D, 18-55 lens, Sigma, 24-135, Tamron 70-300, Pentax 50mm f1.4, 'A' teleconverter, 500mm Tamron mirror lens, 300 Cosinon mirror lens, and a bantle of older flashguns plus one home studio kit. Absolutely cracking stuff, particularly the Sigma.

One of my better choices, going Pentax.

Hi everyone, first post here (well, 2nd after my into) and i've got to agree with all that has been said above.

I spent ages looking for my first plunge into the DSLR market (i've been using bridge cameras for ages) and i couldn't understand the fuss with the canon and especially the sony range. They just feel cheap and plastic and have the poorest viewfinders of the whole lot. The cheapest Canon i held that i though was a quality piece of kit was the 40d. Nikon & Pentax build quality seemed a level above the rest in that regard. I then managed to handle a K-m and it felt much more substantial and after reading and reading and reading about the K20d, i ordered one this morning and will quietly sit here and await delivery - tomorrow is too far away!

Can't wait to get started

I honestly believe that if you had more qualified people in the photo and video departements of those mega eletronics stores, you'd see more Pentax sold.
They have no idea what they are selling, and have no way of informing a costumer properly.
Only had 2 good experiences, both in Jessops, and guess what, I was recommended the K10D (it was a fantastic price at the time). Sadly I had my mind set on a super zoom, dont regret that buy, but I do regret not buying the K10D earlier.

We just bought a new TV and the same lack of knowledge amongst sales staff applies.

The only answer is to do the research ourselves and if we're lucky we might find a knowledgable sales person. We won't know that though unless we've already looked into things!